Wine with Food (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "WHEN THE GASTRONOMIC MAP OF THE WORLD WAS DIVIDED BY MUCH SHARPER BOUNDARIES THAN IT IS TODAY AND THE VITICULTURAL MAP WAS MUCH MORE LIMITED,..." (more)
Key Phrases: principal grape variety, sole variety, des grains nobles, New Zealand, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

What wine complements Thai food? How about sushi or chili? Can I serve red wine with chicken?

A simple formula -- white with fish and chicken, red with meat -- once dictated all wine and food pairing, but times have changed. Rules like this don't fit the way people are eating today. Indeed, it is not unusual to find Mexican cuisine mixed with a hint of north Indian or French with some German influence. For the marriage of taste that we expect from food and wine, today's global village cuisine requires the fresh approach found in Wine with Food.

In this beautifully illustrated book, Joanna Simon explores the relationship between wine and food with her hallmark unstuffy expertise. Rules can be followed for perfect partnerships, but they should occasionally be bent or broken. For instance, follow the rule of matching the weight of wine to the weight of food and you might serve a steamed chicken breast with a Sauvignon Blanc, but a dark coq au vin -- also chicken but very different -- calls for a full red Burgundy. An exception to that rule involves the intensity of flavor: fatty rich foods are best paired not with a heavy wine but with a light, crisp one that provides contrast.

Wines should not be matched to ingredients alone, however, and so Simon explains the impact of various cooking methods and sauces on the character of foods and recommends the consequent wine choices. A steamed salmon steak has a much more delicate flavor than one that is charbroiled, and the difference suggests a Chablis with the former but a Pinot Noir with the latter. Tomato sauce requires a wine like Sauvignon Blanc to stand up to its acidity, but if the sauce has meat in it, a full fruity red will be a better match.

Simon conveys the logic of food and wine marriages, combining authoritative knowledge of wine with commonsense observations. In a worldwide overview of each type of grape, from Chardonnay to Syrah, she includes an evocative description of the wines produced from that grape and suggests foods that are wonderful companions. Then she explores the classic combinations the world around and shows us, for instance, that the same quality that makes a Chilean Merlot such a perfect complement to local empanadas is also found in Australian Shiraz. A cold ratatouille is well partnered with local Provence whites, she points out, but the lively herbal qualities of those wines can also be found in California Sauvignons. Finally Wine with Food includes a convenient quick-reference section that summarizes food-to-wine and wine-to-food matches. With Joanna Simon's wisdom, wit, and style, Wine with Food is the ultimate guide to today's most delicious wine and food combinations.

About the Author

Joanna Simon is the eloquent and expert author of Discovering Wine. She is the wine columnist for the Sunday Times in London and was the 1992 winner of the Glenfiddich Wine Writer of the Year Award.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster (February 13, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684835223
• ISBN-13: 978-0684835228
• Product Dimensions: 11.4 x 9.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #440,890 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Rules and how to break them, May 22, 2000

By	Margaret Snook (Chile) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Joanna Simon has provided a wealth of information about teaming the right wine with the right food. This is not a cookbook; she is providing the foundations necessary to go forth and create with confidence. She discusses the rules, the effects of cooking styles, and wine varietals. Taking the regional aproach, she explores the classic foods and wine combinations of Europe,the Americas, Australia and New Zealand and then goes on to tackle the more challenging foods of Asia. The book concludes with a fabulous chart for matching an impressive list of wine varieties to food types and another for matching food to wine. I like to use this book in conjuntion with Sid Goldstein's Wine Lover's Cookbook for an excellent dual-approach: Simon is heavier on the wines and Goldstein heavier on the food. Together they provide novice and expert alike with a solid grounding and the desire to eat and drink well.

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointment for USA readers, September 24, 2001

By A Customer

I have had this book for several months and read through it several times before deciding to alert USA readers they are likely to be disappointed with its contents. While the wine discussions are informative, the discussion of pairing them with foods is decidely European. You will seldom find these meals or even their ingredients in America. Those in the USA would be better served with: The Wine Lover's Cookbook: Great Recipes for the Perfect Glass of Wine
by Sid Goldstein

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tremendously Useful, February 28, 2004

By	z_bookworm (Westchester County, NY) - See all my reviews

I've gone from completely ignorant to very successful in pairing wines with food simply by using this book. I've owned it for 3 years, and frequently bring it with me to my wine shop before a dinner party. It mystifies me that a couple of anonymous reviewers say the book isn't of use to Americans. If you ever eat barbecued spare ribs, Thanksgiving turkey, or Boston clam chowder, all of which are featured in the "classic combinations" section, or pizza, roast chicken, scrambled eggs, frankfurters, stir-fry, prawns, leg of lamb, roast beef, asparagus, cauliflower w/cheese sauce, chile con carne, or corn on the cob (and I could go on) which are all in the quick reference section, or anything steamed, fried, stewed, grilled, roasted, with a sauce, or cooked with wine, which are included in the section on how cooking methods relate to wine choices, or foods that are sour, salty, or sweet, or have tomatoes, olives, eggs, cheese, mustard or citrus fruit which are all in the "Principles" section, you can find just about all you need to know about matching what you're cooking and eating to a harmonious wine.

I've found the two final, easy-to-use, quick reference sections that alphabetically list many foods with suggested wines, and many wines with suggested foods, worth the price of the book alone, and I've practically worn them out. Most importantly, Ms. Simon's taste is impeccable, with common dishes or hard-to-match ethnic foods from around the world that don't have a classic match. I even got a match for my Thai Massaman curry take-out! As the recommendations are keyed to the grape and style of the wines (say, unoaked Chardonnay), not to specific vintages or labels, they remain useful over the years for the gourmet or the wine retailer. The book also went over very well as a gift to a sister foodie. Thank you, Joanna Simon.